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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. kid — to tease
  3. rest — what's left
  4. kid — child
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. rest — what's left
  9. face — part of the head
  10. bass — low music
  11. face — to point toward
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. game — wild animals
  14. game — a match
  15. face — to confront
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. bass — the fish
  21. capital — a city
  22. rest — a break
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. wake — a trail

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com